For the solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul, patron saints of Rome, the Order of Malta’s Grand Master Fra’ Giacomo dalla Torre del Tempio di Sanguinetto attended the Holy Mass officiated by Pope Francis in the Vatican Basilica. He was accompanied by Grand Commander Fra’ Ruy Gonçalo do Valle Peixoto de Villas Boas, and Grand Hospitaller Dominique Príncipe de La Rochefoucauld-Montbel, besides other members of the Sovereign Council.

During the celebration, with the ritual of the Blessing of the Sacred Pallium for the 31 metropolitan archbishops, the Holy Father invited those present to follow the example of Peter and Paul: “The Apostles stand before us as witnesses. They never tired of preaching and journeying as missionaries from the land of Jesus to Rome itself…….Let us think about them too as witnesses to forgiveness. In their failings, they encountered the powerful mercy of the Lord, who gave them rebirth”.

At the Angelus dedicated to the feast day of the capital’s patrons, the pope urged the faithful and Romans in particular “to behave with a civic sense in the face of society’s problems.” Behind them, along Via della Conciliazione, was the traditional ‘infiorata’, magnificent pictures created with flower petals, a custom that dates back to 1695 and mostly practised in the Castelli Romani area.

Photo Credit: ©Vatican Media